Three years after its creation, Saint Louis University’s club racquetball team has placed third in the PINCHSHOT.com Midwest Intercollegiate Racquetball Championships. This marks the team’s first tournament placement in its history.

Twelve Midwestern universities participated in the tournament, which was held Feb. 8 to 10 at Vetta Sports Concord in St. Louis.
Senior team member Natalie Collins stressed the precedent-setting nature of SLU’s performance.

“This tournament was very unique because we get to give Saint Louis University its first trophy as a racquetball team,” Collins said in an e-mail.

While other universities had more players, Collins said SLU’s nine players set themselves apart through their effort and school spirit.

“We truly came together as a team,” Collins said. “Being a much smaller university than the majority [of schools] that attended, we consider this a tremendous accomplishment.”

Collins said that women and men are scored within the same tournament bracket in Olympic-style scoring. An especially strong performance came from Collins, who tied for first place in the girls’ doubles category.

Team practices are held on Tuesday and Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. Collins said that 15 to 20 people usually show up, and cited “high interest in the club this year” as a principle reason for the team’s heightened success.

With a tournament place under its belt, the club racquetball team seems intent upon continuing to improve their record.

“We made a mark in intercollegiate racquetball,” Collins said.?”We now hope to go to nationals, which [will be] held in Kansas City, Mo., March 26 to 29.”